Lurkers
The Lurkers are a race of varying creatures seen in The Precursor Legacy, Daxter, Jak II, and The Lost Frontier. They were the primary antagonizing faction in The Precursor Legacy, lead by Gol Acheron and his sister Maia Acheron, and became slaves in the Haven City-era during Jak II, before they were liberated after the death and superseding of the tyrant Baron Praxis towards the end of the second game.Jak and Daxter: The Precursor LegacyJak II The race varies widely, ranging from insects to large beasts, fish to reptiles and amphibians, and birds to primates, all with two primary distinguishing traits: two pairs of spurs placed along the jaw line appearing to be made of something similar to cartilage, and large, yellow eyes.Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier History ''The Precursor Legacy'' .]] During The Precursor Legacy, the Lurkers acted as the primary antagonizing faction under the control of Gol Acheron and his sister, Maia Acheron. Throughout the course of the game they terrorized humans in villages all in a quest to find all Precursor artifacts and eco, as well as serve Gol and Maia in their mission to flood the world with dark eco. Lurkers held fort in many major hub locations, including Sentinel Beach, Misty Island, and Forbidden Jungle in which they were deployed while antagonizing the Sandover area. They were later found in various locations surrounding Rock Village such as Precursor Basin, lost Precursor city, and Boggy Swamp. Klaww, a giant and notable member of the Lurkers, assaulted Rock Village by stationing himself in the volcanic area of Mountain Pass while throwing flaming boulders at the village. A large lurker fort was found on Snowy Mountain on top of the Volcanic Crater in which many lurkers were stationed in and around a large stronghold surrounded by wooden stakes. Lastly, they would be found in Gol and Maia's citadel towards the end of the game. After The Precursor Legacy After the supposed death of Gol and Maia, the Lurkers' future is unknown. They evidently survived the Metal Head Wars as babaks, lurker sharks, and jungle fish were seen in the future.''Daxter'' (game)Jak X: Combat Racing Babaks at some point inhabited the dig site which was originally a secret lurker cave where they constructed villages until the Krimzon Guard began mining for eco there and captured them. Either after the death of their leaders, or after experiencing the Metal Heads, babaks turned non-hostile and became allies to the humans (though the piranha and shark still remained hostile). This is possibly what led to their enslavement, though the details of these politics remain largely unknown. However, it could have something to do with the fact that they were near-extinct,Jak II, BradyGames p. 109 with the apparent exception of water-dwelling specimen such as the shark and jungle fish. ''Daxter''—''Jak II'' By the time of Jak II, lurkers were regular slaves, enforced by the Krimzon Animal Control. Lurkers were known to have behavioral problems and typical animalistic hygiene problems. However, one lurker named Brutter, who, seemingly could speak the human language, became a regular citizen in Haven City and had a store set up in the western Bazaar. He also acted as an advocate for other "lurker brothers", sending Jak on the missions "Rescue lurkers for Brutter" to free trapped lurkers. After the death of the tyrannical ruler of Haven City, Baron Praxis, and the evident dissolution of the Krimzon Guard (and thus the Krimzon Animal Control), Brutter became captain of the New Krimzon Guard, a transition faction between the Krimzon Guard and the Freedom League seen in Jak II. It is unknown what happened to Brutter after the events of Jak II as he is not seen again. After Jak II The only lurkers seen after the events of Jak II and before the events of The Lost Frontier were jungle fishs which made a rather diminutive appearance during Jak X: Combat Racing inside a fish tank at the Bloody Hook pub in Kras City. During The Lost Frontier, the only lurker seen was Barter, a self-proclaimed "top-dog" and bar owner in Far Drop. He seemed to be treated equally by the pirates and other humans. Jak and Daxter could complete side missions ("bar-brawls") for Barter to earn Precursor orbs and scrap as well as plane modifications. Overview Characteristics Lurkers, while coming in many different forms resembling many different species in the animal kingdom, have two distinguishing traits making them easily recognizable against other species: all lurkers have spurs of bone or cartilage placed along their lower jaw, some spurs growing longer or shorter than others, as well as two large, yellow eyesA trait also carried by Gol Acheron, a unique human. (though in some rare cases, insectoid lurkers' eyes are not large, rather beady). Some, especially those representing primates or more advanced than insects, fish, or birds, wear diaper-like clothing with makeshift cloth and patched together material. Most lurkers have either a red or blue skin and fur color (or sometimes an even mix; purple), although some also are seen with orange, green, yellow, or beige, though this is less common. During the first game, most lurkers also had metallic collars or braces, suggesting slavery or a drone-like military system under the Acherons. Society During The Precursor Legacy, the Lurkers did not appear to have any societal structure amongst themselves, rather followed blindly the command of Gol Acheron and Maia Acheron. They did not appear to have any hierarchy, military or otherwise, other than lurkers which were seemingly more capable than others. During Jak II they worshiped various totems in the dig, though other than this they mostly followed Brutter's general direction. Habitat Due to the large variety of lurkers, they inhabit nearly every known habitat in The Precursor Legacy. They appear in the sea, rivers, jungle, swamp, mountains and caves. In Jak II they inhabited a cave (possibly hiding so they are not captured as slaves) in makeshift huts and houses. Military Lurkers come in many different species and tribes. Babaks are always present in lurker-controlled locations, but many species of either larger or smaller lurkers appear. Their military, though not civilly existent, is formed by necessity and different lurkers are deployed to areas in which they are capable of handling for their size and/or level of intelligence. Technology Weapons It appears as if most lurkers do not use equipment for combat or artillery, though there are some lurkers with clubs (bone armor lurkers) and others; the driller lurker will attack you with large drills. Some lurkers can shoot fire from their hands, spit dark eco projectiles, use electricity, and use spines on their back to attack their enemy. Vehicles The lurkers are able engineers and have designed a multitude of water, land, and air vehicles, though they excel at constructing balloons and other aircraft. Their vehicles are often made out of simple wood, cloth, and rope, though they will sometimes use metal on larger objects. The largest vehicles commonly carry massive spikes made out of bone for aesthetics. Common vehicles include a trapeze balloon and the transport balloon. The former was used in Jak II to move the rift rider, and is significant because it was the only vehicle to use electrical equipment, suggesting an technological or economical change since The Precursor Legacy. Their largest air vehicle was a large dirigible, which was stationed at Boggy Swamp to remove a piece of Precursor robot from the swamp. Another large vehicle, a Lurker ship was docked at Misty Island. Aside from these few they have also constructed very small, hand-driven helicopters and ice drillers. Species Note: All (except at least fiveSand worm, bone armor lurker, glacier troop, gnawing lurker, quicksand lurker) names used are conjectural (unofficial) names; the official names of most lurker species were not given except in generic ambiguity. Gallery Lurker Shark attack.jpg|Lurker shark Lurker crab screen.png|Lurker crab Sand worm render.png|Sand worm Lurker puppy screen.png|Lurker puppy Babak.png|Babak Poisonous eel.png|Poisonous eel Jungle fish.png|Jungle fish Hopper (lurker).png|Hopper (lurker) Jungle snake.png|Jungle snake Aphid lurker.png|Aphid lurker Quicksand lurker screen.png|Quicksand lurker Bone armor lurker screen.png|Bone armor lurker Robber.jpg|Robber Puffer.png|Puffer Double lurker.png|Double lurker Bully.png|Bully Swamp rat.png|Swamp rat Kermit.png|Kermit Swamp bat.png|Swamp bat Pedal-copter lurker.png|Pedal-copter lurker Yeti.png|Yeti Snow bunny.png|Snow bunny Ice lurker.png|Ice lurker Glacier troop.png|Glacier troop Spider (lurker).png|Spider (lurker) Gnawing lurker.png|Gnawing lurker Driller lurker.png|Driller lurker Citadel bunny.png|Citadel bunny Green eco lurker.png|Green eco lurker Brutter concept art.png|Brutter Barter screen.png|Barter Notes References Category:Factions Category:Lurkers